German Forces

MG Team

Demyansk 1942-43-The Frozen Fortress

A German MG-34 team from 18.Inf Division (mot.) firing from inside a building in Staraya Russa. X Army Korp created a virtually impregnable urban defence within the city that fended off numerous Soviet attacks throughout 1941–43. Although Soviet artillery gradually reduced the urban centre to rubble, the North-western Front’s failure to capture Staraya Russa played a large role in determining the outcome of the Demyansk campaign.